Chapter 8, the old lady's room

It has already been revealed. Little Ma shook the two reports in his hand and said, The embroidered shoes were worn by the old lady, and the ashes found at the home of the deceased Zhang Jie came from the cigarettes discovered in Jin Shiba's room.

There is nothing left

This is anti-natural and anti-scientific

We were in discussion when suddenly, from a distance, the sound of a pony echoed: "Ah, so you are here, looking for the dead!"

The genealogy is a treasure managed by each generation of the Jin clan leaders. Under the stewardship of the Jin clan leaders, it has passed through eighty-two generations. Calculating at thirty years per generation, the Jin Wolf Heavenly Stronghold has a history of over two thousand four hundred years. Without examining the genealogy, one might not realize that, in fact, the records of the first clan leader align with those in the county annals, indicating that the Jin Wolf Heavenly Stronghold already existed during the Warring States period. However, this is not the focus of my research into the genealogy; I am primarily interested in modern history.

There is an abundance of things that are anti-natural and anti-scientific; we do not engage in debate, but rather go directly to seek out what remains after the burning.

Tianguan is a small restaurant, a place where we often gather for meals. Not long after Xiao Ma and I sat down and ordered our dishes, Bai Bai arrived in a hurry. After finishing our meal, we went to the hospital to visit Cheng Huaihuo. This guy was actually in a moderate coma, and the medical equipment and facilities in the county could not provide a specific diagnosis for the coma. However, the bureau was very concerned about this matter, and the team leader personally came to inform us that they had discussed sending Cheng Huaihuo to the city hospital with the leaders. After finishing our meal, we went to the hospital to visit Cheng Huaihuo. This guy was actually in a moderate coma, and the medical equipment and facilities in the county could not provide a specific diagnosis for the coma. However, the bureau was very concerned about this matter, and the team leader personally came to inform us that they had discussed sending Cheng Huaihuo to the city hospital with the leaders

I said: "There is only one possibility, to conceal the evidence, such as covering these yellowish-white papers. This is spirit paper, but it seems somewhat different from what was found around the grave pit. I am not sure if it is due to being soaked; we need to take it back for testing"

No, what I mean is that Lin Weiye is performing rituals at the west entrance, while others are conducting ceremonies at the east entrance. They are all engaged in rituals, but why did Lin Weiye come over? Was he drawn here or was there another reason? If we can clarify whether Lin Weiye died first or if Jin Shiba ran away first, the situation will likely become very clear

It felt strange to hear, so I personally went to ask Aunt Zhang: "Aunt Zhang, are you sure you didn't see it wrong? It was raining heavily that night, how could there be a fire? And it was floating in mid-air?"

I asked: "Are there no other findings? For example, signs of having packed up and left?"

When the pony walked up to me, I asked, "Have the test results come out?"

If you think of anything, just let me know. If I am not here, inform Chief Jin.

The environment in the room is, to be honest, quite monotonous. There is not much furniture, and the arrangement is also simple. I rummaged through everything, but unfortunately, I found nothing. In the end, I could only take an old lady's dress and a handful of her hair, placing them into an evidence bag as I walked out. Just then, Bai Bai and Xiao Ma were coming down from the second floor. Bai Bai was holding a box of cigarettes, and she shook the box at me, saying, "These are out-of-town cigarettes; they are not sold locally."

After searching for two hours, I finally discovered some hopeful findings. Jin Shiba's great-aunt, Jin Gui, served as a palace maid in the royal palace. When she returned, she was already fifty years old and remained unmarried, eventually passing away in the village. It is highly likely that the embroidered shoes were brought back by this palace maid named Jin Gui. After her death, her belongings were sorted by Jin Shiba's grandfather's generation, which means it is quite possible that Jin Shiba's grandmother was aware of the existence of such a pair of embroidered shoes

What color is that flame

The house where Jin Shiba lives is quite similar to mine, with furnishings that are typical of the Miao ethnic group. The difference is that his house is much dirtier and more chaotic than mine, and there is a strong, pungent smell of medicine in the room, which is clearly a result of the elderly lady's poor health and the accumulation of medicinal preparations over the years

First, let's identify the primary crime scene, and we also need to clarify to whom the hair and skin flakes inside the shoes belong. I think we need to go to a place we have never had the chance to visit, m.hetushu.com.

I turned on the light, and Bai Bai, Xiao Ma, and I split up to search each house and every corner for clues. I was responsible for searching the old lady's room. As soon as I entered, I felt very uncomfortable. Even though the windows were closed, I could feel a cold wind blowing against my face inside. The towel hanging in the corner of the wardrobe was even swaying, making a faint and eerie flapping sound. I really wanted to turn around and leave, but I couldn't. I had to grit my teeth and investigate.

Aunt Zhang responded.

I left with Bai Bai, and just as we stepped outside, Bai Bai said: "It's pouring rain, there's a fire, and it's a red and green fire. What is this? Is it possible?"

To be honest, I have completely come to believe in the shaman, but I cannot tell the captain this, as he would want to hit me. Although he cannot defeat me, he is the leader, so I can only remain silent. In any case, this only brings benefits to Cheng Huaihuo and no drawbacks. What troubles me is that I cannot find the reason for Cheng Huaihuo's situation. I have conducted various analyses and hypotheses, only to ultimately refute each one of them, and I have never felt so helpless before

I said: "I was also hurt by this iron wire, and then I thought of the wound on Lin Weiye's left arm. What a coincidence."

Why did the embroidered shoes appear at the crime scene? I was exchanging opinions with Bai Bai, who proposed two hypotheses. First, it is possible that the elderly lady wore these embroidered shoes during her burial, and the shoes accidentally fell out when the body was removed. The only way to clarify this is to find those outsiders who dug the grave, as no one from the village approached the elderly lady after her passing.

Aunt Zhang, looking aggrieved, said: "I couldn't possibly be mistaken; that fireball was flying and it was quite frightening. I glanced at it a few times and was too scared to look any longer, so I hurried back to sleep. It wasn't until the next day that I learned such a significant event had occurred in the village."

What? I am not surprised; I am shocked. This is because Jin Shiba, Lin Weiye, and those who were invited from outside to dig and explore the grave of the books had already left before Zhang Jie died. What is the deal with this cigarette ash? There are only two possibilities. First, we have made a mistake regarding the time of Zhang Jie's death; the poison could have altered the corpse's temperature and rigor mortis, but that seems far-fetched—this technology could easily win a Nobel Prize. Second, we have not made a mistake regarding the time of Zhang Jie's death, but rather the timing of the cigarette ash falling and forming. If this is the case, Zhang Jie's death appears very strange, leaving no trace to follow. Moreover, why would Jin Shiba's cigarette ash be found in Zhang Jie's home? And in the storage room?

I say: "There is a possibility, although it is difficult to explain clearly. In general, it involves performing rituals, and it is possible to burn on the water's surface; it should also be possible in the rain!"

Are you suggesting that the one responsible for the actions is not the deceased Lin Weiye, but rather someone else?

We opened the door to the Jin family's house, while the clan leader Jin stayed outside. Bai Bai, Xiao Ma, and I went inside.

Will-o'-the-wisps do not exist; that is phosphorus. However, I told Aunt Zhang, and she wouldn't believe it, so I didn't say anything. Instead, I asked, "What else did you see or hear?"

Bai Bai Dao: "At Cheng Huai Huo's place, the results from the municipal hospital are the same; there are no issues with the person. However, we do not know why they remain in a coma. I have already started to think in a different direction. In fact, this cannot help but lead me to think differently. Should we consider changing the direction of our investigation?"

Secondly, it is possible that the old lady is indeed not dead. Suppose Jin Shiba has committed some unscrupulous acts, she might have taken important belongings and run away with Jin Shiba. She believed that the embroidered shoes were important and happened to bring them along, but they accidentally fell out. This is reasonable, isn't it? The indirect evidence is that Miao people generally possess many silver ornaments, especially Miao women, yet we did not find a single piece of silver jewelry in the old lady's home.

He shook his head and said, "No."

Is there nothing? I always feel that something is not right, but I can't figure it out at the moment. I handed the evidence bag to Xiao Ma and said: "You should go back to the bureau and have the clothes and hair sent for DNA extraction by the forensic team, and compare it with the DNA extracted from the embroidered shoes."

At noon, Bai Bai and I had a meal at the home of the clan leader Jin. In the afternoon, we went to the first crime scene. We examined another entrance to the bamboo forest, the eastern entrance. We also studied the position where the wire was hanging at that time, concluding that the deceased Lin Weiye was carried into the bamboo forest only after his death. Based on the height at which the wire was hung, we inferred that the person who carried Lin Daxian's body was over 1.75 meters tall and was male. We also studied the position where the wire was hanging at that time, concluding that the deceased Lin Weiye was carried into the bamboo forest only after his death. Based on the height at which the wire was hung, we inferred that the person who carried Lin Daxian's body was over 1.75 meters tall and was male.

Little Ma responded and took the evidence bag, walking outside. Bai Bai and I exchanged the search areas and conducted another search, but found no other leads. We then went to check the family tree with Clan Leader Jin. I wanted to see what the generations above Jin Shiba had done. While this might not yield any discoveries, we cannot overlook any small details in our investigation. Although this entails a significant workload, sometimes it truly feels like we are working in vain. However, if we do not investigate, we will certainly be wasting our efforts.

"Can it really burn?" Bai Bai said, "It seems likely that this is indeed the first crime scene. These papers were used by the deceased Lin Weiye for a ritual. He was killed during the ritual and his body was moved into the bamboo forest. But why was the body moved?"

After discussion, I and Bai Bai identified five households that could see the eastern entrance of the bamboo forest and the surrounding area to inquire separately. I found nothing on my side, but Bai Bai made a discovery. One of the household's mistress, Aunt Zhang, provided a very important piece of information. On the night of the incident, around two o'clock in the morning, she got up to use the bathroom and saw a ball of fire from her window, which was floating in the air near the eastern entrance of the bamboo forest.

The little horse driving the car also slowed down its speed and directed its gaze towards me, waiting for my answer

I said: "The room of the old lady at Jin 18"

At nine o'clock the next morning, the weather was quite pleasant, and the long-awaited sunlight bathed the earth. Xiao Ma and I were sitting in the car in front of the Public Security Bureau, waiting for Bai Bai to come out with the report. Bai Bai was quite efficient; he had only been inside for five minutes when he emerged with the report. Sitting in the back seat with me, he flipped through the report and said: "Two substances were extracted from the shoes. The first is hair, and the second is skin flakes. DNA analysis confirmed that both are from females, but they are not from the same person. The hair is over a hundred years old, while the skin flakes are recent. The analysis results of the iron wire you brought back are also out; they match the wound on the left arm of the deceased Lin Weiye, and the wound was inflicted post-mortem. This means that the bamboo forest was not the primary crime scene."

A bit red, a bit green, like ghostly flames

After nearly an hour of traveling, I finally arrived at Jinlang Tianzhai. I took Xiaoma and Baibai to the home of Chief Jin, who would then lead us to the home of Jin Shiba. Although the weather was exceptionally good today, the village was still filled with the same atmosphere: silence, eeriness, and terror. No one was willing to go outside, and agricultural work had largely been neglected. Chief Jin was already anxious, stating that if the case was not resolved soon, everyone would be unable to endure it any longer. Even if the old lady truly turned into a vengeful spirit, we needed to provide answers quickly. I understood, but there was nothing I could do; the case was so perplexing that it was not easy to solve. Did they think that watching a single episode of a TV drama could resolve an unfathomable case? I dared not give such answers lightly; I could only tell him that we were doing our best.

Little Horse and Bai Bai asked in unison, "Where is it?"

I returned to the eastern entrance of the bamboo forest with Bai Bai, and began searching within a range of several dozen meters. The area was filled with lush, waterlogged fields, already planted with vibrant green seedlings. We first walked around the edges of the fields, observing our surroundings, before eventually entering the fields. Ultimately, we did find some yellow and white scraps of paper, which showed signs of having been burned, clearly remnants of a fire, and were almost completely soaked and disintegrated by the water. Along the edges of some seedlings and among the stone piles on the field ridges, we also discovered black ash and some substances that appeared to be organic tissue. We later entered the fields again and indeed found some yellow and white scraps of paper, which showed signs of having been burned, clearly remnants of a fire, and were almost completely soaked and disintegrated by the water. Along the edges of some seedlings and among the stone piles on the field ridges, we also discovered black ash and some substances that appeared to be organic tissue.

As the car started and drove out, the pony exclaimed, "Heavens, this is indeed a major breakthrough. Xiaoyu, how did you discover this?"